Tom Ward as Captain Latimer in Doctor Who: The Snowmen. Photo copyright of the BBC.
Star of Silent Witness for over 10 years, Doctor Who presents a departure for Tom Ward from the modern day to the world of Sci-Fi. In this fifth and final BBC America press interview, the actor explains what we can expect from his character in Doctor Who: The Snowmen (airing Tuesday, December 25th @ 9:00 p.m. EST/PST on BBC America) and whether he will be watching on Christmas Day.
"He hasn’t been used to dealing with his children," explains Ward as he reveals a small insight in to his character of Captain Latimer. "He wants to love them, but he is an old naval captain that has struggled to build a relationship."
The actor plays an archetypal Victorian gent, complete with a rather good beard, "Yes it is," he says with a laugh, confirming the beard is real. "You often get the obligatory moustache in a Victorian drama, but I wanted to go further and the beard seemed appropriate."
Having spent 10 years in a drama not necessarily accessible to his children, Ward reveals he is excited to have done something they can watch, "My children are very excited that I am in Doctor Who and I am glad they have something that they can finally watch! My oldest child is 10, so this will give him bragging rights at school and hopefully me a little bit of school gate currency."
So what drew him to the role? "It was one of the best scripts I had read in a long time and the thought of doing a period Sci-Fi was really fun."
With the actor admitting that his favorite Doctor is Tom Baker, he expresses admiration for current Doctor, Matt Smith. "He is brilliant. Matt kept the set feeling happy and is full of energy," says Ward, "He has a great relationship with the crew." As well as co-starring Ward, the Christmas episode will also feature Richard E Grant. "I had one scene with him," explains Ward, "and he was a legend. An absolute delight."
In this episode, we also meet the Doctor's new travelling companion Clara, played by Jenna-Louise Coleman, for the first time, "She is a brilliant actress," says Ward, "full of life and energy, so funny and has a great rapport with Matt."
With the actor confirming that his children are fans, will he be watching on Christmas day? "We have just moved in to the country, so it will be the family round and the fire blazing. I don’t normally like to watch myself on TV, but this time I think I will make an exception…"
As noted above, photo copyright of the BBC, so please no unauthrozied copying or duplcating of any kind. Thanks!
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